Introduced in October 1993, the PowerBook Duo 250 added an active matrix screen to the Duo mix.

This plus an improved battery (which lasts 2.5 hours) did a great deal to increase the popularity of the Duo line.

• Got a PowerBook Duo? Join our PowerBook Duo and PowerBook 2400c Club on Facebook.

Details

• introduced 1993.10.21 at $2,500; discontinued 1994.05.01
• supports System 7.1 to Mac OS 8.1
• CPU: 33 MHz 68030
• FPU: optional 68882 in dock
• Performance: 4.6 (relative to SE)
• RAM: 4 MB, expandable to 24 MB using a single Duo RAM card
• ROM: 1 MB
• display: 640 x 400 84 ppi 4-bit active matrix
• ADB port: only with dock
• SCSI port: only with dock
• serial ports: 1 DIN-8 RS-422 port on back of computer
• proprietary modem slot
• Gestalt ID: 38
• Size (HxWxD): 1.4″ x 10.9″ x 8.5″
• Weight: 4.2 pounds
• upgrade path: Duo 280
• power supply: M7783

Online Resources

• PowerBook Duo and DuoDock problems, no TPM on most Intel Macs, iTunes for Linux, and more, Dan Knight, Low End Mac Mailbag, 2008.07.17. Also a Mac mini that displays some Web images in grayscale, vintage Mac desktop patterns, where to sell a used Mac, dithered images, and more.
• The Duo Dock Tick of Death Page, Sean Cleary. Duo Docks can fail, refusing to accept or eject a PowerBook Duo. Here’s how to fix it.
• Mac ‘Book Power Management Adventures, Charles W Moore, ‘Book Value, 2009.05.19. If your ‘Book won’t power up, shuts down while your working, or has other power issues, resetting its internal power manager may clear things up.
• Why You Should Partition Your Mac’s Hard Drive, Dan Knight, Mac Musings, 2008.12.11. “At the very least, it makes sense to have a second partition with a bootable version of the Mac OS, so if you have problems with your work partition, you can boot from the ’emergency’ partition to run Disk Utility and other diagnostics.”
• Creating Classic Mac Boot Floppies in OS X, Paul Brierley, The ‘Book Beat, 2008.08.07. Yes, it is possible to create a boot floppy for the Classic Mac OS using an OS X Mac that doesn’t have Classic. Here’s how.
• The last MDD Power Mac, Windows death spiral, thoughts on improving keyboard design, and more, Dan Knight, Low End Mac Mailbag, 2008.07.29. Also restoring a ticking Duo Dock, Compact Flash as a Solid State Drive, Psystar’s legal troubles, and bargains galore.
• The Compressed Air Keyboard Repair, Charles W Moore, Miscellaneous Ramblings, 2008.07.24. If your keyboard isn’t working as well as it once did, blasting under the keys with compressed air may be the cure.
• A Vintage Mac Network Can Be as Useful as a Modern One, Carl Nygren, My Turn, 2008.04.08. Old Macs can exchange data and share an Internet connection very nicely using Apple’s old LocalTalk networking.
• MacBook Air: Return of the PowerBook Duo?, Robert Alpizar, Marketing the Mac, 2008.10.29. Like the PowerBook Duo, the MacBook Air is the ideal field computer, but it needs a lot more features when its on your desk.
• Vintage Mac Networking and File Exchange, Adam Rosen, Adam’s Apple, 2007.12.19. How to network vintage Macs with modern Macs and tips on exchanging files using floppies, Zip disks, and other media.
• Better Classic emulation, Leopard on any G3?, CardBus and Compact Flash, and more, Dan Knight, Low End Mac Mailbag, 2007.12.18. Also where to find even older versions of BBEdit Lite, more oddball Mac video connections, installing System 7 on a PowerBook with no install disks, and lockups when faking out the Leopard installer.
• Solving Mac Startup Problems, Adam Rosen, Adam’s Apple, 2007.12.12. When your old Mac won’t boot, the most likely culprits are a dead PRAM battery or a failed (or failing) hard drive.
• Better and Safer Surfing with Internet Explorer and the Classic Mac OS, Max Wallgren, Mac Daniel, 2007.11.06. Tips on which browsers work best with different Mac OS versions plus extra software to clean cookies and caches, detect viruses, handle downloads, etc.
• Hacking Mac OS 7.6.1 so many Mac OS 8 apps will run, Max Wallgren, Mac Daniel, 2007.10.30. With a little ResEdit work and a second copy of your System Folder, you can run a lot of OS 8 apps with Mac OS 7.6.1.
• Simple Macs for Simple Tasks, Tommy Thomas, Welcome to Macintosh, 2007.10.19. Long live 680×0 Macs and the classic Mac OS. For simple tasks such as writing, they can provide a great, low distraction environment.
• Apple’s first subnotebooks: The PowerBook Duo family and the PowerBook 2400c, Charles W Moore, Miscellaneous Ramblings, 2007.09.04. With rampant rumors of a subnotebook MacBook Pro, it’s a good time to look back at Apple’s earlier attempts at subnotebook computers.
• Mac System 7.5.5 Can Do Anything Mac OS 7.6.1 Can, Tyler Sable, Classic Restorations, 2007.06.04. Yes, it is possible to run Internet Explorer 5.1.7 and SoundJam with System 7.5.5. You just need to have all the updates – and make one modification for SoundJam.
• Appearance Manager Allows Internet Explorer 5.1.7 to Work with Mac OS 7.6.1, Max Wallgren, Mac Daniel, 2007.05.23. Want a fairly modern browser with an old, fast operating system? Mac OS 7.6.1 plus the Appearance Manager and Internet Explorer may be just what you want.
• Format Any Drive for Older Macs with Patched Apple Tools, Tyler Sable, Classic Restorations, 2007.04.25. Apple HD SC Setup and Drive Setup only work with Apple branded hard drives – until you apply the patches linked to this article.
• Making floppies and CDs for older Macs using modern Macs, Windows, and Linux PCs, Tyler Sable, Classic Restorations, 2007.03.15. Older Macs use HFS floppies and CDs. Here are the free resources you’ll need to write floppies or CDs for vintage Macs using your modern computer.
• System 7 Today, advocates of Apple’s ‘orphan’ Mac OS 7.6.1, Tommy Thomas, Welcome to Macintosh, 2006.10.26. Why Mac OS 7.6.1 is far better for 68040 and PowerPC Macs than System 7.5.x.
• 30 days of old school computing: Increasing battery life with a RAM disk, Ted Hodges, Vintage Mac Living, 2006.09.14. When using the hard drive, the old battery ran out of juice within 30 minutes, but running from a RAM disk it still has a 50% charge after half an hour.
• Mac OS 8 and 8.1: Maximum Size, Maximum Convenience, Tyler Sable, Classic Restorations, 2006.09.11. Mac OS 8 and 8.1 add some useful new features and tools, and it can even be practical on 68030-based Macs.
• Inside your notebook’s battery: Ordinary AA Li-Ion cells, Dan Knight, Mac Musings, 2006.09.08. That expensive battery in your notebook computer probably holds less than $30 worth of off-the-shelf AA Li-Ion batteries.
• Compact Flash with SCSI Macs, PB 1400 CD-RW upgrade problems, and Web incompatibilities, Dan Knight, Low End Mac Mailbag, 2006.06.16. Suggested ways to use Compact Flash with vintage Macs and PowerBooks, problems getting CD-RW to work with a PowerBook 1400, and more thoughts on website incompatibilities.
• Moving files from your new Mac to your vintage Mac, Paul Brierley, The ‘Book Beat, 2006.06.13. Old Macs use floppies; new ones don’t. Old Macs use AppleTalk; Tiger doesn’t support it. New Macs can burn CDs, but old CD drives can’t always read CD-R. So how do you move the files?
• System 7.6.1 is perfect for many older Macs, John Martorana, That Old Mac Magic, 2006.03.24. Want the best speed from your old Mac? System 7.6.1 can give you that with a fairly small memory footprint – also helpful on older Macs.
• System 7.5 and Mac OS 7.6: The beginning and end of an era, Tyler Sable, Classic Restorations, 2006.02.15. System 7.5 and Mac OS 7.6 introduced many new features and greater modernity while staying within reach of most early Macintosh models.
• Web browser tips for the classic Mac OS, Nathan Thompson, Embracing Obsolescence, 2006.01.03. Tips on getting the most out of WaMCom, Mozilla, Internet Explorer, iCab, Opera, and WannaBe using the classic Mac OS.
• Which system software is best for my vintage Mac?, Tyler Sable, Classic Restorations, 2005.11.22. Which system software works best depends to a great extent on just which Mac you have and how much RAM is installed.
• Why you should use Mac OS 7.6 to get the most out of vintage Macs, Thomas Ahart, The Productive Mac, 2005.12.12. Although you may be able to run OS 8 or 9 on your old Mac, you’ll generally find better performance using Mac OS 7.6.
• SCSI and FireWire Disk Modes, Paulo Rodrigues, Tangerine Fusion, 11/29/00. How to use SCSI Disk Mode and FireWire Target Disk Mode for ultrafast file transfers.
• Run Mac OS 8.1 on your ‘030 Mac, Charles W Moore, Applelinks, 8/8/00. “Born Again enables certain 68030 Macs to support Mac OS 8.1.”
• Games for ‘030s, Brian Rumsey, Low End Mac Gaming, 5/26/00. A look at games that run nicely on the old 68030-based Macs.
• PowerBook history, Adam Robert Guha, Apple Archive, 5/12/00. A history of portable Macs from 1989 through 1996.
• Getting Online with a PowerBook Duo, Julie Fugett, Mac Daniel, 1999.11.17
• How to upgrade your DuoDock, Power-Macintosh. Includes lots of helpful photos.
• Recovering a stolen PowerBook, The ‘Book Page. One user’s experience.
• PowerBook Duo/2400 List
• Email lists: PowerBooks, Classic Macs Digest, Vintage Macs
• Apple Specs for PowerBook Duo 250

Cautions

• Apple Computer will consider this computer obsolete as of July 16, 2001 in the United States and July 23, 2001 in Canada. As of that date, service parts and documentation will no longer be available from Apple.
• Modem port limited to 57.6 kbps (printer port may be faster); use of a 56k modem on the modem port may limit throughput. See 56k modem page.

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